Written by: Lance Parkin
Directed by: Gary Russell
Featuring: Fifth Doctor & Nyssa
Release Date: November 2001
Big Finish Summary
Nyssa will die at dawn, and the Doctor doesn’t even know why.
To save her life, he must make a desperate journey to the only place in the universe where a cure might exist.
When even that fails, the Doctor has a choice – let Nyssa die, or make a deal with the devil.
After all, the road to hell is paved with good intentions…
Introduction
Nyssa’s ailing health sees The Doctor return her to her home world of Traken for aid. Meanwhile, a mysterious figure in Traken’s orbit makes his move to strike the planet. Primeval takes its time to build up the narrative, but there is plenty to appreciate here.
Plot
At its heart, Primeval is both a prequel and a sequel to the 1981 TV story The Keeper of Traken. Nyssa (Sarah Sutton) collapses off-screen, seen on the TV show in the likes of Four to Doomsday. In an excellent opening scene, The Doctor (Peter Davison) takes the unconscious Nyssa back to her home world of Traken. His hope is that the famed healer Shayla (Susan Penhaligon) will have a cure to Nyssa’s condition. The story is set some two thousand years before Nyssa was born, in the Union of Traken’s ‘Primeval era’. The planet is still known across the universe as one of the most tranquil and pacifist societies. It also makes use of the Source, a bio-engineered artificial sun which provides near infinite energy to the planet. At this time, there is no Keeper who manages the balance of and interprets the Source. Instead, the Source would govern itself and the Consuls would wait for the Source to pass judgement. The Keeper of Traken isn’t a mandatory watch, but I do recommend to fully appreciate all references.
“To hear heresy from an off-worlder is bad enough, but from a citizen of Traken?”
– Consul Janneus to Nyssa
Theology forms much of the backdrop of this story, in a first for this audio book series. The people of Traken states that the Source brought their society out of the darkness, but also that they are fully atheist. The Consuls (the ruling body of the society) are unaware how close their practices are to spiritualism. In this story, the Consuls ask the Source, a machine, to pass judgement on whether The Doctor is evil. The Source, being a machine, does not provide a response to such a subjective question. The Consuls then proceed to interpret this silence, as a priest would interpret a religious text. Nyssa is branded a “heretic” for calling the Source what it is, a machine. This society is thus presented as hypocritical in how they reject those who believe in Gods.
On a spaceship outside of Traken is a religious cult who worships a mysterious figure called Kwundaar (Stephen Greif). Their beliefs are extreme, seeing their ‘living God’ as the one to bring them happiness and power. One member proudly states that they would jump off a cliff without question if Kwundaar asks them to. Though their fanatical worship is at odds with the tranquil Trakenite society, a parallel can be made between the two. The Kwundaar cult members are outwardly spiritual, whilst Traken is inwardly so. The Doctor and Nyssa are outsiders to this period, so are the perfect individuals to scrutinize both societies. Several scenes are dedicated to one of the pair conversing with these groups and pointing out the pitfalls of each. The Kwundaar faithful are blinded by their beliefs and the Trakenites are hypocrites in how they perceive the Source. I really appreciated the angle Primeval takes on this and believe it is one of the story’s biggest strengths.
For those who are looking for action-packed scenes, Primeval only has a handful. These are focused on escaping Kwundaar’s ship in part two and the invasion of Traken in part four. You may consider the scenes on Traken to be very slow in comparison. I shared these thoughts on my first listen. After reflecting and hearing the audio book again, I did a 180 and grew to prefer the more conversational scenes. The flip side to having many quieter scenes is that those with action seem abrupt and over all too quickly. Primeval does not have a progressive build up of tension for having many quieter scenes. Even so, I found myself questioning the pacing of the story often. The Doctor meets Kwundaar, the obvious villain of the story, far earlier than I was expecting. It could be argued that this showed The Doctor’s desperation to find a cure for Nyssa. However, it also meant that part one became a pinnacle of tension, and part three especially suffered in comparison. This wasn’t helped by the TARDIS crew briefly departing, a sure-fire way to rob any tension from the story.
When Traken was invaded in part four, I felt whiplash from how the intensity peaked so quickly. It felt at odds from the rest of the story, and my interest in this part thus declined. Much like the multi-Doctor audio story The Sirens of Time, the danger came and went all too fleeting. The final part also sets up future encounters for The Doctor with beings like Kwundaar. Though interesting as a concept, it was treated as a throwaway line right at the story’s end. This sums up my feelings on the final part; it felt so packed that no scenes could breathe. Overall, Primeval stands up on its merits. I just wish that there was more consistency in how the plot was built up.
Character
After reading the premise of the story, I fully expected this to be Nyssa’s story. Sarah Sutton has done a solid job in portraying this character in these audio books. As of yet, she hasn’t had a whole story to sink her teeth into. Primeval, set on her home planet of Traken, could have provided a perfect opportunity for Nyssa to take the lead. Alas, this was a missed opportunity to put her front and centre. Her psychic abilities, which have been shown in other audio books, including The Land of the Dead, are relevant here. There is a brilliant sequence early on where Nyssa receives a creepy message whilst unconscious. Undisclosed whispers and a warped ticking from a clock really add to this unsettling moment. To this story’s detriment, this is sadly the only time these psychic messages are used in this story. We do get some interesting revelations on past events in Nyssa’s life, which I appreciated. She always felt like an underwritten companion on the TV, so it was great to some development for her. I also liked the discussion with the Trakenite Consuls about how she has changed since travelling with The Doctor. Sarah Sutton gives another great performance, but I am reluctant to call Nyssa the main character of this story.
I was initially worried that Nyssa would be unconscious or going through some bad stuff in this story. To my relief, levity was provided in the form of a developing friendship with the healer’s assistant Sabian (Ian Hallard). Their scenes together, including one where she tries to teach him the Charleston, are charming. This would honestly be the type of friendship that the companion would leave The Doctor for (see Susan, Jo, etc.) Fortunately for listeners, Nyssa’s final story takes place in the TV story Terminus, not here. Just to hammer that home, the writers completely drop Sabian in the final act. She doesn’t even have a scene with him to say goodbye! For all of these interesting additions, her character is treated here just as she is always treated. She is the voice of reason, the one who can point out logical flaws in Traken’s society. She would have made an interesting focal point for the entire story, but the writers had other ideas.
Instead, as per usual, Peter Davison’s Fifth Doctor is the main character. Interestingly, he is portrayed as being naïve and fallible, instead of the smartest person in the room. Listeners may well start silently yelling at him on at least one occasion for being brain-dead. When he realises his error, his almost exasperated tone was unintentionally amusing. On the flip side, the story also showcases his vulnerability, and Peter Davison shines in these moments. He is terrific when The Doctor shows deep concern about Nyssa’s health in that great opening scene. This Doctor’s recklessness also appears, a side of his character that is always interesting to see. Whilst it makes sense that he headed this story, Nyssa would have provided a more personal connection to Kwundaar.
“Don’t turn around.”
– Kwundaar“I’m not frightened of you.”
– The Doctor“No. But you haven’t turned around, have you?”
– Kwundaar
On that note, let’s discuss Kwundaar. Initially, I thought he was a returning villain (guess who?) and I was prepared for disappointment. Thankfully, the writer chooses a villain far more in spirit with the story as a whole. There are several aspects of Kwundaar which definitely work in an audio book. I like that his voice is modulated to the point of sounding inhuman. I love that we never get told what Kwundaar looks like. Instead, we have to imagine something horrifying when we see what effect looking at his face has. Stephen Greif has fun voicing the character, and his true identity is something fairly unique for Doctor Who. But, in all honesty, Kwundaar is a dull and one-dimensional villain. I think my main grievance is that he is established in the first half hour of the story. He even comes face to face with The Doctor in this time! But, due to the limitations of his powers, he then sits in the background for the majority of the story. His motivations and identity is interesting, but his ultimate plan is nothing original. Even worse, it is nearly identical to the plans of the villain in The Keeper of Traken.
Kwundaar does have the benefit of having a couple of named minions, Anona (Romy Tennant) and Narthex (Billy Miller). The story attempts to contrast between the two on how much blind faith they have in Kwundaar. I don’t think the inclusion of the two was completely justified, despite adding to the story’s theological discussion. There are also a couple of inconsistencies around one of these two that caused me to question the story’s logic. This slightly uneven character development is typical of the guest characters in this story overall. Nyssa and The Doctor have some interesting moments. However, the villain is fairly weak, and the other characters pretty much disappear once the plot reaches its peak. Though these do not negatively impact on the story, they also do not add much to the story’s core themes.
Listening Experience
One of the most prominent elements in Primeval is the contrast between the ‘perfect’ Trakenite society and Kwundaar’s religious cult. This is also conveyed through the use of sound, for the first three parts at least. The Traken soundtrack consists of bird song and other nature-based sounds when outside, and soft whirrs when doors are opened. This tranquil track makes listeners feel at ease in scenes set on Traken. The aforementioned Charleston music scene fits in perfectly with this feeling of sanctuary. The soft and natural sounds on Traken are also an effective contrast to sounds on the Kwundaar ship. Characters on board the ship are forced to talk in raised voices. The crude clunking noises as the ship travels through space compliments the militaristic characters that inhabit it. There is an excellent transition between Traken and Kwundaar’s ship which perfectly sums up the constant comparison. Nyssa encourages Sabian as she teaches him the Charleston in that fun scene with the line “get your arm up”. The scene then cuts to the Anona and Narthex sparring on the ship. Narthex says “get your arm up” to Anona as he strikes her and breaks her nose. I think a couple more examples of this would really have strengthened the constant comparison between the two societies.
When Traken is eventually invaded by Kwundaar and his minions, the soundtrack also feels like it has been invaded. Traken’s soothing backing track is replaced by a cacophony of explosions and raised voices. Initially, these additions feel very impactful, but the listening experience generally dips towards the end. Much like character development, the soundtrack feels secondary to the plot developments here. The backing track becomes increasingly static and mundane, to the point that it feels from a different story. I do think this would have been counter-acted by greater use of sound for scenes in the Source chamber. At one point a character calls the swirling colours and lights “beautiful” when in the presence of the Source. Instead of this, convey the beauty of this through sound, which would really work with this audio book format. We know that Big Finish have previously experimented with sound in stories. The Sixth Doctor story Whispers of Terror is probably the best example to date of using sound experimentally. I think this final part would have felt less jarring if there was a more thoughtful use of sound. Overall, the soundscape of this story is largely effective and compliments the story’s themes and settings.
Final Thoughts
Primeval is a slow burn story, and it took time for it to sink its hooks in me. As the story progressed, I appreciated that the story dedicated time to its central themes rather than being all action. The discussion on theology in both societies explored was done well. I especially liked how this tied into different soundtracks used throughout the story. This was also one of Nyssa’s strongest appearances to date within all Doctor Who mediums. It does eventually dip in quality and turn into more generic Doctor Who fare when the plot takes centre stage. Overall, Primeval was a well crafted tale and one of my favourite Peter Davison-led stories to date.
Ratings
Plot: 3.5/5
Character: 3.5/5
Listening Experience: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5
Primeval is available to listen to on Spotify or Audible. It is also available to purchase on the Big Finish website, the link to access which is below:
https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/doctor-who-primeval-650
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Have you listened to Primeval? What did you make of the return to Traken, and the additions to Nyssa’s character?
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Next Time – The One Doctor
When the evil Skelloids launch an attack upon the seventeen worlds of the Generios system, its peace-loving inhabitants face total destruction.
So it’s fortunate that the famous traveller in time and space know only as the Doctor is in the area, and doubly lucky that, with the help of his pretty young assistant, Sally-Anne, he manages to defeat the deadly creatures and save the day.
But now it looks as though the Doctor’s luck has run out.
Who is the mysterious, curly-haired stranger who insists on causing trouble? What role does the feisty redhead Melanie play in his scheme? And what have they to do with the sinister alien cylinder approaching Generios?
One thing is certain: for the Doctor and Sally-Anne, there’s deadly danger ahead…
The Blogging DJ 